Sep 10, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68
Frankly, On Faith.
We often struggle with purpose. What are we supposed to do in life, and does it even matter to anyone else if we don’t do it?
In a nutshell, yes.
Now, it may not come to us in a lightning flash, overnight, or even over a year. It may take a while for us to develop or realize what we have to offer. But here’s the point:
We do have something to offer. Every single one of us.
And someone else is waiting to receive it.
God put young Esther in the care of her uncle, Mordecai, before the King took her into his palace. And it was while she was in this place she didn’t want to be, away from her family, that God used her the most. Not in the comfort of her own house, under the protection of family. But in a strange new home with a man she did not love. When her family was threatened, she did the unspeakable: She spoke up.
“If you keep quiet at a time like this, deliverance and relief for the Jews will arise from some other place,
but you and your relatives will die. Who knows if perhaps you were made queen for just such a time as this?”
~Esther 4:14 NLT
If you don’t want to be used, God will find someone else for the job. But just think how perfect for the position you are if you’re His choice. And just think how perfect His timing is that He would chose you now.
Don’t be afraid to speak up. You could be someone’s Esther today.
TWEET THIS: Be Their Esther https://ctt.ec/77Tqz+ @RealMojo68 #faith #franklymydear
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Sep 9, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68
What’s your social media identity? Are you popular on Instagram but not Twitter? Does your Facebook feed look a little hungry?
One way to keep your numbers up across the board is to maintain consistency.
WHO you are is as important as WHERE you are, and these are both as important HOW OFTEN you make your presence known.
I’ve seen people have a different user name for each platform they use. That’s not a good idea, unless you’re creating multiple personalities. You want your followers to be able to find you easily, like the neon Denny’s signs for late-night travelers.
Now, I’m not advocating cookie-cutter posts. You don’t want your feeds to be a Xerox copy of each other all the time. But you do want to share your same message through different venues.
You are the cake, and your media is the icing. The icing doesn’t change the cake, it makes it more appealing.
Frankly, My Dear . . . Icing on the cake!
Some sites may want a small piece, others require something bigger. A third requests a chunk of frosting the size of your fist. You’re the chef. This is your restaurant, your bakery, your tail gate party. You know what you’re good at, so don’t be afraid to serve it up with a smile.
And be sure to include the whole meal. Your followers will, well, follow you more if the breadcrumbs you leave are flavorful, lead to better foods, and invite others to the table. By that I mean, well, now I mean I’m hungry. But in the social media world, I mean give your peeps a buffet to choose from. There are nine gajillion ways to cook foods. Surely you know more than just one meal’s worth.
Your garden, your fridge, your pantry all work together to make a great meal. Your media sites should do the same. Add a little of this, a side of that. My, that’s a lovely four-course plate you’re serving up.
Bring your people back to the table with a variety that will garner their taste buds. And if you experiment with the recipe now and then, great. How else will you know what you can add to your plate?
Just make sure your meals are going out three times a day, every day. Don’t leave ’em hungry and eating elsewhere. Like picky eaters, your audience will let you know what works and what doesn’t.
Now if you’ll excuse me, I have some cupcakes I need to bake. And eat. Share. I mean, share.
TWEET THIS: #SocialMedia Saturday: What Are You Feeding Your Followers? @RealMojo68 #cake
With a cool apron in a hot kitchen,
Bake those posts!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
Sep 8, 2017 |
by Molly Jo Realy @RealMojo68
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Five Things Friday
You know those moments when you know what you know, you just didn’t know you knew it until someone else turns on the light bulb? Yeah. That’s how the new career is lighting up my world lately. And it’s ahh-mazing. It’s like a triple-caffeine-intake while racing the Indy 500 through LA Traffic and surviving kind of high. It is that kind of awesome sauce.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Which Bulb are You?
So, I’m still doing the writing thing, still doing the editing thing. But as you can tell, I’m also still doing the marketing thing. And this new career keeps reaffirming that I know what I’m doing. How’s that for sweet in me tea. (Oh, please. Y’all know it’s not a week unless I mention my sweet tea.)
BEE the Zebra is super excited, too. Because while NIPPERS is all about the media, y’all just know BEE is all about the marketing.
Frankly, My Dear . . . : BEE the Zebra has a plan
Now, whether you’re a writer, editor, quilter, clothes salesperson or dog walker, we can at least all agree that we’d have, like, zero business if it weren’t for marketing, am I right? And whether you have a team behind you, or you run a do-it-yourself ad campaign, here’s a few things I know.
So grab yourself a glass of that goodness and relax while I share with you five prominent marketing ideas.
- I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again. And again. And again. Word of Mouth Advertising only works if you open your mouth. You can’t very well be a dazzling zebra if you don’t let anyone see or share your stripes, now, can you?
Frankly, My Dear . . . : Word of Mouth Advertising only works if you open your mouth.
- Brand Awareness. This was a fun one for me to name. Because I love love love helping others find, and maintain, their online identity. You are not your brand. Well, sometimes you are, but not really. You have so many facets. And like most people, you keep a good portion of your private life, well, private. But if you were to poll your peeps, most of them could easily give you five to ten traits that make you, you. From those, you can easily curate your brand. It should be the image you want to publicly reflect. When people think these things, they should think of you. That’s the power of branding.
- Needs Analysis. Holy cow, is that a fancy way of saying, “How can I help you?” A needs analysis is a term that’s been used for years. It basically is the LEGO connector between what you need and what someone else has to offer. Offer-Person says, “Let’s discuss this.” And Need-Person says, “This is where I’m at, and this is where I want to go.” So Offer-Person creates some strategies to help get you there. The information is the needs analysis, the diagnostic appointment to get the ball rolling.
- Pivoting. We all do this. And as fiction writers we’re especially good at it. This is where Person A says, “I need Item A.” But Person B, who knows more about the situation, says, “I agree. Let’s take care of this and then let’s talk about that.” See? You went from A to B with just a turn of the page. Writers pivot every time we ask you to believe our characters then put them into turmoil. We cause you to read on, with different expectations.
[Note to self: Stop letting Josie get into so much trouble in NOLA. no spoilers!]
- Audience Engagement. Do I really have to explain this? Nope. But I do want to discuss it. This of course is when you get your peeps involved. You’re nothing without your audience . . . Unless you sing in the shower. And while most of us like the acoustics, do we really want to stop there? Not at all. We all have gifts, talents, product, merchandise, you-name-it-we-got-it stuff that we want to share with others. So we need to make sure we’re actually sharing it, and not just laying it down. It’s a hand-off, a relay-race if you will. Get your people involved and they’re more apt to pass the baton to someone else (that’s the referral).
Frankly, My Dear . . . Are you ready to run the marketing race?
So now it’s your turn: What are some of your marketing tips and tricks?
TWEET THIS: Frankly, My Dear . . . : Are you ready to run the #marketing race? @RealMojo68 #FiveThingsFriday
With high top running shoes and a bejeweled baton,
Happy Marketing!
~Molly Jo
And Frankly, My Dear . . . That’s all she wrote!
